He Lied
by LiLy-saLvatore-cuLLen
Summary: He didn't have a problem with Diggory wanting to ask her out. He was over her, wasn't he?


James made his way to the Heads' dormitory devoid of his usual saunter. The conversation he had just shared with Diggory troubled him; more so than it should have. He was over her- completely over Lily Evans.

_It's useless. I can't stop thinking about her._

No. He was over her. There were more women at Hogwarts than just Lily Evans.

_But none that captivated him as such._

"Nargles," he muttered, and the portrait swung open revealing the golden glow of the fireplace casting its light all over the Common Room while creating shadows in the far corners; a rather summative metaphor for how he felt at the moment.

She was there: sitting on the couch, essay in her lap and quill in her mouth as she pensively considered her next sentence. Of course she would be there; he could never escape her. Her head snapped up at the sound of the portrait swinging shut, and as James emerged from the portrait hole a giant grin spread across her face. She inwardly slapped herself: she had become such a fangirl, something she vowed never to become. But she couldn't help it. It had happened just as he said it would.

"_You know you love me, Evans. Don't deny it."_

_His trademark Marauder's smirk graced his flawless face._

_Lily glared at him, green eyes flashing as she took in his arrogant demeanor._

"_Never in your life, Potter."_

How had he known? Then again, he knew a lot of things. The secrets and mysteries continued to build up whenever James Potter occupied her thoughts. Which was all the time, lately, it seemed.

But he was over her now. Just her luck: right when she fell for him he would give up on her. It always seemed to happen that way. Lily could never get a foot in edgewise.

"Hi James." She offered, a little overenthusiastically in her opinion.

"Lily." James acknowledged.

Immediately, Lily knew something wasn't up to par with James. The smile faded from her face, replaced with concern.

"You okay, James?"

James looked up at her and smirked. It didn't reach his eyes.

"Just bloody brilliant! Why wouldn't I be?"

"Dunno. You just don't seem yourself."

"Actually, funny story, Lily…" James started.

Lily set her essay and quill on the table next to the sofa and brought her legs up onto the cushion.

"I'm listening." She answered, directing all her attention on him.

"I'm walking back from dinner, you know, and Diggory comes up to me…"

"_Potter, can we talk?"_

"_Sure thing. What do you need?"_

"_Actually, it's more of a personal question, if you don't mind."_

"_Shoot." James continued walking to the staircase._

"_Well, it seems that… well, you clearly don't lavish as much attention on Lily Evans as you used to."_

_James froze at the mention of her name coming from Amos Diggory's mouth. He slowly turned to face Diggory, studying his face. What did he want? And what did Lily Evans have to do with it?_

"_It's become obvious to me that, you, well, have seemingly lost interest in her." Diggory continued._

_James swallowed, letting the lie leak from his lips._

"_Indeed."_

"_So, I guess, what I'm asking… would you have a problem if I asked her to dinner next weekend?"_

_James turned to Diggory, trying to hide the flames that were steadily flaring in his hazel eyes._

_Who did this wanker think he was, rounding up on Lily, _his_ Lily, right when he seemed to show disinterest?_

Not my Lily, _James thought._ Never my Lily.

"_We've established I have no feelings for her whatsoever, so why _would_ I have a problem, Diggory?" he snapped._

_Amos grinned widely, oblivious to James' threatening demeanor and abrupt change in mood. "Excellent. Thanks, Potter."_

In retrospect, he understood why Diggory had asked him for permission. He had a notorious reputation for hexing anyone whosoever _thought_ the name 'Lily Evans.' But that was in the past. He gave up on her.

"Funny, huh?" James finished, chuckling.

Lily's eyes had turned downcast. _That prat Diggory wanted to ask her out? Perfect. Now not only did she have an essay to write, Ancient Runes to translate AND star charts for Autumn to measure out and complete, she also had to think of a creative way to turn down Diggory._

"Yeah. Funny." Lily muttered.

James noticed that Lily was not at all thrilled at the prospect of having Amos Diggory ask her out. He was handsome, rich, athletic… girls fawned over him almost as much as they fawned over the Marauders. What wasn't there to like about Diggory? At least in Lily's case. James didn't miss the jealousy that filled him.

"Did he say when he would ask me?" Lily questioned.

"Er, no. We sort of just left it at that. I didn't have an issue, so Diggory left rather content I would say." James tried to be passive about the whole situation. He felt it wasn't working out for him so well.

_He didn't have an issue with Diggory asking her out. He was _definitely _over her._

"Oh. Alright. Thanks for the warning, James."

Was that a tear he saw trailing down her cheek?

_Could it be…?_

No. Best not be optimistic.

James turned to head towards his dorm, but a nagging pull at his gut turned him around and forced him to stride over to the sofa Lily was on.

_You're a liar, Potter. You've lied to yourself, _and _to the love of your life. You're a right toe-rag. You were never over her._

He sat down, rather close to her and facing her, placing his arm on the back of the sofa, encasing Lily. Lily looked up surprised, and quickly wiped her cheek.

"Was there something else?" She asked, her tone husky from tears.

James' hand lifted to wipe a stray tear off her chin. Lily gasped.

_Now or never, Potter._ James thought.

"I lied." He whispered.

This was clearly not what Lily expected to hear. Her eyebrows crossed and her eyes were questioning.

"I don't know if I understand…"

"I lied, Lily. I _do_ have a problem with him asking you out. I'm _not_ over you. I… listen. I'm… despite what you think and how I've acted towards you… I… I'm still in love with you, Lily. Have been since first year. It was never a game to me…"

Slowly, a watery smile formed on Lily's lips.

_She still had a chance. He still loved her._

Lily was beyond elated.

"And I… I want to apologize for how I've behaved… I've been a prick… I…"

He was unable to move his mouth any longer, as it suddenly became preoccupied with a distinctly different, much more enjoyable activity than talking.

* * *

**AN**

**Hello everyone. Thanks for reading. This is one of three fics I will be writing that will be posted this month. The next one should be posted within a few weeks, and the third one is Halloween-related. I know I hold a reputation for writing tragic Halloween fics, but this year, I've decided to take a happier route in terms of Halloween and Lily x James. Happy reading!**

**-LSC**


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